Pushing Up Daisies
by Aero-Cluster
Summary: The flowers were like gems—they were heartbreakingly and breathtakingly beautiful. For once she felt like slashing and shredding every jewel in the garden, but who was she to do that really? After all, flowers look best especially when they're meant for the dead.
1. The Butterfly Effect

**Pushing Up Daisies**

The flowers were like gems—they were heartbreakingly and breathtakingly beautiful. For once she felt like slashing and shredding every jewel in the garden, but who was she to do that really? After all, flowers look best especially when they're meant for the dead.

* * *

**Chapter One: The Butterfly Effect**

Erza cursed.

She had lost count of the times she sneezed during that day. Lately she had been experiencing a series of headaches, surfacing every now and then and making her forehead throb in an annoying manner. She summoned a sword out of thin air and checked the way she looked on the blade's reflection.

God did she look miserable.

Her pinkish complexion had lost its glow and she looked more like a cross between the colors gray and green. Apart from that unusual skin tone, her nose was so red it rivaled the hue of her scarlet hair. Erza grunted, fishing out a handful of tissues from the pocket of her skirt and blew her nose like there was no tomorrow. She wondered what had become of her condition, when clearly she was healthy and fit as a fiddle.

"Erza nee-chan."

The redhead gave off an irritated sigh before sniffling horribly. Tired and restless, she faced the dark-haired boy who obviously adores the hotheaded Dragon Slayer of Fairy Tail.

"Romeo." she barked, following her unladylike response with a disturbing cough. The boy whose jolly disposition was so overwhelming, eventually changed into a concerned state. He tried approaching the sick mage but Erza motioned her hand to prevent him from coming closer to him.

"I don't want you catching my cold Romeo." she sniffed.

"That really looks bad. Do you want me to call Porlyusica-san for you?" he asked.

Erza shook her head.

"Is there anything that you need from me?" Romeo fished out a white envelope right out of his pocket and handed it to her. The redhead merely looked at the boy whose hand was outstretched in an awkward manner. She then checked his face and was surprised to see him averting his gaze and—

_Is he blushing?_

"T-This," he started and Erza watched as the stuttering boy searched for the right words. Erza took the white envelope from him and checked for the sender's name immediately.

"This is from?" she questioned the small mage who finally recovered from his flustered state.

"Jellal nii-chan."

Erza was thankful for the first time that day because she could blame her cold for whatever shade of red her face had become. Shuffling from her seat, she tried regaining her composure back.

"Well thank you for delivering this to me Romeo."

She had expected the boy to bow or say "you're welcome" and leave in a hurry, but Romeo just stood there, face getting a tad bit hotter and redder.

"Is—Is there anything else?" she sniffed.

"Jellal nii-chan wants to thank you for the other night."

Erza blinked.

"What night?"

Romeo blushed and timidly met the oblivious gaze of the redhead.

"_That_ night," he said.

Erza felt her sickness elevate to another level. The peculiar movements of Romeo—the fidgeting, the blushing and the stammering—all made sense to her now.

She stood up, leaving Romeo behind as she walked out of the guild, relishing the crisp and cold air to calm and cool her overheating system down. She didn't know whether to feel embarrassed for Romeo, or for herself or feel angry—

_Seriously...you're going to give me a fever Jellal Fernandes._

* * *

Erza woke up, feeling a bit better and at least she didn't have a fever. And even though her condition was getting better her cold was still giving her a headache. Feeling that she could no longer bear her pathetic state, she got up and went straight to the bathroom for a hot shower. The warm water worked like magic on her skin. It eased the tension on her muscles and she was able to relieve the woozy feeling from just waking up. She stepped out, refreshed and as some would say—old habits die hard, Erza waltz into her kitchen clothed with just a skimpy towel. From her fridge she took out a hearty slice of her favorite cake and indulged in it as soon as she grabbed the fork.

The redhead hummed a sweet tune, delighted at the sudden burst of flavors that hit her taste buds. After finally finishing the little treat, she rewarded herself with a generous amount of milk, drinking directly from the bottle and finishing it all up in one gulp. Erza sighed, feeling full and content.

"That was good." she sniffed, taking a good look around her kitchen and admiring the spacious yet tidy place. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught a particular material that still sent shivers down her spine.

The white envelope containing a letter.

Erza remembered how humiliating the event that happened yesterday was. She remembered how an innocent little boy like Romeo got corrupted and got dragged in to...something that's meant to be kept private.

She blushed.

She's going to have to punish Jellal and explain things to Romeo.

Soon.

Or she would be walking in the guild with all eyes glued on her and her guild members' voices above a whisper, teasing and degrading her reputation.

Erza blasted out of her room and stuck two plies of rolled tissue paper on both her nostrils to keep her cold from seeping out.

* * *

"Romeo, you don't look so good." commented a practically concerned rosette.

"And I don't really feel that well too..." the dark-haired boy coughed, wheezing when breathing became too much of a trouble. He drowned himself with another glass of water hoping to cure whatever sickness he may have gotten.

"You were so lively and healthy yesterday. What happened?" Mirajane who was busy cleaning the counter asked and refilled the young boy's glass with clear water.

"I don't know," he sniffed, stuffing tissues in his nostrils to prevent the transparent liquid from oozing out of his nose. "I...I think I got it from Erza nee-chan. But this is just a common cold, so there's nothing to worry about." Romeo smiled as if to reassure and stitch up the strength that he had lost during the last hours.

"Shouldn't you be at home resting Romeo?" Happy asked as he offered a raw fish to Romeo. The boy nearly hurled at the stale scent of the seafood and he tried to burn the fish with his purple flame. Unfortunately, in his weak and groggy state, he could not even summon an ember to roast the fish. Lucy walked towards an alarming sight when her peripheral view caught Natsu and Happy crowding over Romeo who was nearly gasping for air.

"What's going on?" Gray suddenly popped out of nowhere joining Lucy as they peeked right at Romeo who was now covering his mouth when a sudden coughing fit attacked him.

"I-Is he okay? What's wrong?" Lucy all but shoved the two panicking duo as they tried coming up with ridiculous remedies. The blonde even heard the flame brain suggest to 'burn his lungs out' while the blue Exceed went for the 'stuff fish into anything and it'll solve everything'. Lucy rubbed the young mage's back hoping to soothe the pain and stop the coughing. The crackling sound and erratic pants of the dark-haired mage drew everyone's attention.

"Romeo!" came a concerned voice from his father. Lucy made room for Macao to get to his son.

"Dad?" his voice came out gruff as he muffled another sneeze.

"I told you to stay at home. Look what you've gotten yourself into." his eyes bore into his son's with a slight hint of anger mixed up in an overwhelming pressure of worry. He took the kid's arm and motioned him to stand up. Romeo slapped his dad's arm away and distanced himself, making sure to avoid his father's grasp.

"I'm fine dad! It's just...a cold!" his statement was then followed by a horrible cough that made Macao frown.

"And a terrible coughing fit. I'm taking you home whether you like it or not kiddo."

"Yeah Romeo, why don't you get some rest first? Besides you can't do anything with your state now." Natsu beamed at the kid who was waiting for the continuation of his statement. "How about I teach you some of my moves when you're healthy again? How's that sound?" Romeo was smiling from ear to ear as he gave the rosette a hearty nod.

"Wow, when did you get so good at talking Natsu?" Lucy teased, quite impressed at her friend's newly acquired smooth talking abilities.

"Hn, you actually think Squinty Eyes has got brain?" Gray suddenly commented after hearing the compliment that slipped out of the celestial spirit mage's mouth.

"Huh what was that Droopy Eyes?" Natsu challenged bringing his face closer to intimidate the ice mage.

"You wanna go at it? Yeah?"

"Yeah!"

Romeo gave off a lighthearted laugh which was enough to stop the meaningless fight and before he could utter a witty remark he lost his balance and fell flat on the floor, draining his energy and losing his color altogether from the unexpected fall. He stared out into space while the rest of them rushed to his aid.

"Romeo," Lucy sucked in a breath. "Your eyes are red."

"Huh?"

From everybody's field of vision, the young mage's sclera—which was once white—was now decorated with veins, branched out like vines that flowed with blood from the inside. Apart from that vibrant color, his whole face, including the rest of his body parts were pale. Romeo didn't mind what they had said and instead focused on another part of his body that was making him uncomfortable. He placed his hand to pinch the bridge of his nose, hoping to stop the cold from dripping out.

"Oh my God..." Mirajane's mouth went agape at the next thing that happened.

They all watched in horror as his nose bled—thick, red liquid leaking out and dripping down both his nostrils all the way down to his chin.

* * *

Erza made a quick stop at her favorite bakery before heading to Fairy Tail. The redhead was having a terrible upstart because of her cold but after a quick chitchat with the baker about discount and freebies, she felt elated almost afterwards. She was sweetly humming to herself as she had with her a plastic bag full of pastries she'd eventually share with the rest of the guild members.

She was just a few blocks away from headquarters when Warren's voice spoke to her—and as she may have believed, to the rest of the members.

His message was clear and brief.

_Anyone who's out of town, please go to Porlyusica-san. Something terrible happened!_

It didn't take a moment before Erza turned on her heel and requipped in to her Flight Armor, dashing through the streets of Magnolia and realizing the degree of seriousness the message relayed, she didn't think twice about dropping her precious bread products. Porlyusica was always their last resort, Erza thought—the time when she lost her eye, their master's fall during Laxus' rebellion, when Wendy was attacked by a member of Raven Tail and so many other bad situations they were in, Porlyusica seemed to always aid them during dire times. And even though Erza hated to admit it to herself or anyone else and since she couldn't put it any other way...Porlyusica was always a sign of bad news.

* * *

"Do you think they liked our little present? Gehehehe!" a shrill voice crackled in the darkness.

"It is a gift...from the Underworld...they should be grateful..." came another ghostly whisper.

"It's a...butterfly effect. A simple flutter of a butterfly's wings can cause typhoons over the world. That is according to chaos theory." the emptiness of the voice indicated a hollow and emotionless presence. Something that's not human...

"Very well explained." the voice could be heard smiling and laughing as it continued in the darkness. "Much is also applicable to our little present. A simple touch, could very well mean the end of them." a deadpanned silence enveloped the abyss before a terrifying promise was made.

"And by then, we would have plucked all the fairies' wings. Nothing and no one could stop us..."

* * *

**A/N: I know, I know. I should be working on CEAPR but instead this sh*t got stuck in my head and so I had to write it down. XD Gonna be another multi-chap. Loveyouall! YEAH RAW FILE BTW.**

**Inspired by The Walking Dead (c) (not gonna be a zombie fic, promise) and the awesome Yellow Mask's (Biohazard-a Naruto fanfic :D)**


	2. The Outbreak

**Pushing Up Daisies**

The flowers were like gems—they were heartbreakingly and breathtakingly beautiful. For once she felt like slashing and shredding every jewel in the garden, but who was she to do that really? After all, flowers look best especially when they're meant for the dead.

* * *

**Chapter Two: The Outbreak**

Jellal groaned when a certain redhead refused to let even his fingertips trail down her skin.

"You've been avoiding me all day Erza. It's like I'm sick or something. Did I do something wrong?" the ultramarine watched in frustration as the scarlet-haired mage finished a whole glass of water in one gulp. It irked Jellal so much that he found himself staring at the way the light cascaded on the gentle and smooth expanse of her skin. Annoyed him so much that he found himself paying so much attention to the little details that didn't matter before—like how that single droplet of water trailed from the corner of her lips all the way down to the smooth curvature of her neck, playfully rolling down between her collar bone and trailing rather too slowly, disappearing right in the middle between her generous chest.

Jellal gulped.

_Since when did drinking water become so sensual? No, since when did I become so sexually frustrated?_

"You're not sick. I am." she sniffed, feeling better compared to the previous days. She checked her reflection on the mirror and loved how her rosy complexion had finally come back to restore the color and radiance of her skin. The dark rings around her eyes were also quickly receding due to her frequent naps whenever she had the chance to. "I am not risking your health for something so...so..."

"So what?" he smirked and attempted once more to wrap his arms around his beloved Scarlet. She managed to avoid the embrace that would lock her on his frame and ducked her way out of his reach.

"A little cold isn't going to hurt me Erza."

"Yes it will. Romeo collapsed this morning. I'm just being considerate."

"He did? What happened? How is he now?"

"He's fine now. We all panicked when we saw his state." she sighed and took a seat on her desk, crossing her legs in an attempt to feel comfortable. "He looked really bad. His eyes had these red spots and he was hacking like he was going to run out of air." Erza frowned at the horrible memory of seeing the young mage's terrible condition.

"We have Porlyusica-san to thank for. She checked his condition and said that there were ruptured blood vessels in his eyes that caused the red patches. She said this was only normal because Romeo kept on blowing his nose hard and mainly because of the terrible coughing fit that erupted."

Jellal remained silent and only nodded. He already knew what was coming after that so instead of hearing the words come right out of her mouth, he counteracted it with the coolness of his voice.

"It wasn't your fault Erza."

The redhead released a tired sigh and smiled weakly.

"Yes it is, and I don't want you to be the next one who won't be able to walk for a couple of days."

Jellal shrugged and rested playfully on the female mage's bed, his arms folded behind his head and his feet resting against the wooden end of the board.

"My immunity is something I can brag about. Want to give it a try?" he patted the empty space on the bed, his sea green eyes lighting up in a way which only she could understand.

Erza rolled her eyes and crossed her arms across her chest.

"I'm not only doing this because you might catch my cold Jellal."

"Hm? Then what is it?"

"It's because of yesterday."

Jellal blinked.

"Yesterday?"

"_Yesterday_."

"Uh, care to elaborate more my Scarlet?"

Erza puffed her chest out and glared at the man who was teasing her.

"_Yesterday_ when you handed out the letter to Romeo. _Yesterday_ when you told him about that night!"

She waited for his reaction but the empty expression on his face seemed to prove his innocence on the matter at hand.

"What night?"

Erza groaned in defeat.

"_That_ night!"

"Oh."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"Oh!"

"Is that all you have to say? 'Oh?' Really?"

"Well, what do you want me to say? How great and awesome you were in—h-hey!"

Erza stood up and grabbed him by his cape as she dragged him outside of her room.

"H-Hey! I can't go outside! Someone might see me!" the ultramarine threw his hands up in a desperate attempt to make her realize that the strict rule of Fairy Hills revolved around a certain "no-nightly-visitors-past-eleven". Thinking of another alternative, she dragged him back to bed and slid the window open.

"E-Erza! You really won't throw me out of the window r-right?"

"Would you rather be flushed down the toilet then?" she offered rather too darkly.

"I don't know why you're upset!"

"Don't know why?! You told a little boy about our...our..."

"Private Se—"

"Sessions? Yes!"

"I was going to say escapades. With the 'x' replacing the s."

Erza blushed furiously as she prepared to throw him out of her room.

"The first 's' in escapades really. You substitute the letter 'x' and—whoah, you're really—ERZA!"

"We are not having this conversation!"

* * *

Natsu was impatiently waiting as he waited for Lucy to finish combing her hair.

"If you're going to make noise like some kid who lost his toy, I think you should head back to the guild first." Lucy was about to glare at the rosette when she felt something irritating her nasal cavity.

She sneezed.

"You caught Romeo's cold?"

"Something just tickled my nose." she lied when clearly she could already feel a headache coming and a certain pool of liquid forming beyond her air passage.

"Good, because Romeo's got it really bad yesterday."

"Natsu, are you actually concerned about me?" the blonde teased, finally tying up the last strands of her hair.

"Well yeah we're friends." came his oblivious reply and all Lucy did was shrug. It didn't take long before she noticed that something was out of the picture.

"Where's Happy?" her eyes wandered off to every nook and cranny inside her quaint apartment but Lucy didn't manage to even catch a glimpse of Happy's blue fur.

Natsu stretched out lazily as he felt all the muscles in his body constrict then relax.

"He's using your bathroom."

"He's what?! How come I didn't notice him com into my bathroom?"

"Kukuku! It's called stealth mode Lucy-chan."

The celestial spirit mage darted the rosette a disgusted look.

"Whatever," she stood up, ready to go for the day. "Happy's really taking his time huh? I'm gonna go check."

Natsu just shrugged as he was preoccupied with rummaging through the numerous drawers which held the blonde's private possessions. Lucy, getting used to his weird and innocent antics just rolled her eyes as her hand turned the knob of her bathroom. Her gaze wandered off to the tiled floor then to the toilet before finally realizing that the blue Exceed wasn't even there.

"Happy? Are you there in the tub?" Feeling rather a bit worried that there was no response, Lucy slowly shoved the shower curtains aside and shrieked at the sight before her.

Alarmed, Natsu blasted the bathroom door open, leaving its hinges hanging uselessly from the side. He found the blonde lying on the tiled floor, shaking violently. He peered from behind her and saw how she was handling something in her arms. The form she was cradling looked so fragile that it looked like it could break anytime. Natsu's sweat dropped as he joined Lucy to the floor, taking in the rich color that was becoming a bit scandalous for the past few days.

The blue Exceed was slumped on the blonde's lap, breathing rather too heavily and eyes being decorated with the same spot that was the same as Romeo's.

Lucy began nudging Natsu, trying to get his attention when he was not responding to her call.

"NATSU!"

The Dragon Slayer snapped out and looked at Lucy with an expression that his friend had never seen before.

"Happy...is he?"

"Go get Porlyusica-san."

* * *

The medicinal adviser and former member of Fairy Tail sighed.

"Happy is he—"

"He's going to be alright." confirmed the elder woman.

Porlyusica handed out boxes to Makarov before explaining.

"Calling me every time something's up is such a bother. So that's why, I am giving you a whole month supply since this cold has gone out of hand."

Makarov took out a small bottle containing a murky liquid and the members seeing this nearly hurled at the sight of it.

"That looks nasty." Gray muttered.

"Oh, is that the medicine containing—"

"I don't wanna hear what's in it." Levy chuckled upon seeing Gajeel turn green all of a sudden.

"Anyway, thanks for all your help. We'll take over from here." Makarov asked Erza to escort the elder woman outside the guild. The rest of them were all still inside the infirmary observing Happy's condition.

"Well you kids better head back home now. He needs to rest and the fewer you all are in here, the better." The Master took everyone outside but Natsu didn't budge an inch from where he was sitting. Without questioning the rosette's intention he silently left the infirmary, not failing to notice that another member refused to leave.

Happy has still not regained consciousness.

"Hey," she called out to him. "Do you plan on staying here all night?"

"I plan on staying here until he wakes up."

The rosette's eyes remained fixated on his best friend as he waited for the slightest gesture that he was up and alive.

It was when he felt a sudden shift and movement from the bench that he tore his eyes away from Happy and turned to look beside him.

Lucy was sitting next to him.

"Then I'll stay with you until then."

An exchange of looks and smiles followed.

Then a mood-killer sneeze ended it all.

"Luce?"

"I'm fine, I'm fine." she sniffed. "I just need to rest for a bit."

"Then I think it's best if you go home. I'll look after Happy."

"That's the thing. Who will look after you?"

"What?"

Quickly regretting that it had slipped right out of her mouth before she could stop herself Lucy wrapped her arms around one strong bicep.

"I said, let me just borrow your shoulder for the meantime."

Natsu scratched his head in confusion.

He watched through hooded eyes how her chest heaved evenly and how her breathing had become stable.

Lucy had fallen asleep rather too fast.

* * *

The stiffness of his left shoulder woke Natsu up. It was as if he had an anvil resting upon his body. Peeling his eyelids open, he noticed that Lucy was still sleeping on him. He frowned at the sight of her. Usually, the blonde would have this blank and innocent expression when she was sleeping but this time, her brows were scrunched up hard together it looked like she was in pain.

Natsu shook the female mage, hoping to wake her up after suspecting that she was just having a bad dream.

His fingers dug deeply into her skin when a coughing fit erupted from the female. He tried soothing out the terrible hacking by rubbing her back, but it only did little to help her. Soon her body curled in a desperate attempt to stop the burning and scratching sensation that she was feeling on both her throat and lungs. When she managed to grab the panicking male wizard by the arms, she opened her eyes hoping that Natsu would get what she was relaying to him after thinking that she wouldn't be able to speak because of the relentless coughing.

The rosette's eyes widened in horror as the same red patches appeared on the female's sclera.

The nightmare didn't stop there when Happy's body convulsed, his face crumpling in pain as he also began wheezing and hacking, a thunderous sound crackling and making a wet noise.

Blood stained the crisp, white sheets of the infirmary's bed.

It was Natsu's ear-splitting voice that was heard from the halls of the guild before Lucy's body slumped on the floor.

* * *

**A/N: Hope everything was evenly distributed—the humor and the seriousness degree level. :D Anyway, I've decided to kick things up a notch. Things are heating up and as always, character death is to be expected from me. Not that I'm hinting someone's going to die—but if I feel like it's essential to the plot then, meh why not? Leaveoutyerlovepeeps ;)**


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